Bruce Meyer with the 'Belly Tank' racer,a car made from the disposible fuel tank of a P-38 fighter / Chris Woodyard/USA TODAY

by Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY

by Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY

No matter what you call it, it's pretty wild: the idea that you could turn an empty gas tank from a World War II fighter into a race car. But So-Cal Speed Shop was among those that tried, and here's the result.

The Belly Tank racer, now in the hands of collector Bruce Meyer, got close to the 200 mile-per-hour club in its heyday after the war. The tank itself come from a P-38 Lightning fighter, Meyer says.